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No prospective studies including large numbers of dogs with acute haemorrhagic diarrhoea syndrome (AHDS) are published so far. The aim of this case–control study was to describe signalment, history, clinical signs, laboratory values and course of disease in dogs with AHDS. Dogs (108) with idiopathic acute haemorrhagic diarrhoea (<3 days) were prospectively enrolled. Clinical assessment was performed by calculation of the ‘AHDS index’ (0–18). The hospital population and 21 healthy dogs served as control groups. Dogs with AHDS had a significantly lower body weight (median 9.8 kg) and age (median five years) than other dogs of the hospital population (20 kg; 10 years) (P<0.001). Predisposed breeds were Yorkshire terrier, miniature pinscher, miniature schnauzer and Maltese. The syndrome was more likely to occur during winter. Vomiting preceded the onset of bloody diarrhoea in 80 per cent of dogs and haematemesis was observed in half of those cases. Median AHDS index at presentation was 12 (range 3–17). Haematocrit was generally high (median 57.1 per cent; range 33–76 per cent), but exceeded 60 per cent only in 31.4 per cent of dogs. Haematocrit of 48.1 per cent of dogs was above reference range, as was monocyte (50.0 per cent), segmented (59.6 per cent) and band neutrophil count (45.2 per cent). A rapid clinical improvement occurred during the first 48 hours.

Canine circovirus (CanineCV) has been detected in some dogs with severe haemorrhagic diarrhoea, but its pathogenic role is unclear. This study evaluated a suspected association between the presence of CanineCV and acute haemorrhagic diarrhoea syndrome (AHDS) in dogs. The prevalence of CanineCV in dogs with AHDS was compared with that in healthy dogs and those infected with canine parvovirus (CPV). Additionally, time to recovery and mortality rate were compared between CanineCV-positive and CanineCV-negative dogs. Faecal samples of dogs with AHDS (n=55), healthy dogs (n=66) and dogs infected with CPV (n=54) were examined by two real-time TaqMan PCR assays targeting the replicase and capsid genes of CanineCV. CanineCV was detected in faecal samples of two dogs with AHDS, three healthy controls and seven dogs infected with CPV. Among the three groups, there was no significant difference in prevalence of CanineCV. CPV-infected animals that were coinfected with CanineCV had a significantly higher mortality rate compared with those negative for CanineCV. CanineCV does not appear to be the primary causative agent of AHDS in dogs, but might play a role as a negative co-factor in disease outcome in dogs with CPV infection.

Abstract Background Etiology of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (HGE) syndrome in dogs is unknown and histopathologic and microbial investigations have only been performed post mortem. Objective To identify characteristic intra vitam endoscopic and histologic mucosal lesions, as well as bacterial species, within the mucosa of dogs with HGE. Animals Ten dogs diagnosed with HGE were included. Eleven dogs with gastroduodenoscopy and different intestinal diseases were used as controls for microbial changes. Dogs pretreated with antibiotics or diagnosed with any disease known to cause bloody diarrhea were excluded from the study. Methods In this prospective study, gastrointestinal biopsies were collected from 10 dogs with HGE. Endoscopic and histologic changes were assessed according to WSAVA guidelines. Biopsies from the stomach, duodenum, ileum, and colon were investigated by histology and by immunohistochemistry for the presence of Clostridium spp. and parvovirus. The first duodenal biopsy taken with a sterile forceps was submitted for bacterial culture. Results Acute mucosal lesions were only found in the intestines, not in the stomach. Clostridium spp., identified as Clostridium perfringens in 6/9 cases, were detected on the small intestinal mucosa in all dogs with HGE, either by culture or immunohistopathology. In the control group, C. perfringens could only be cultured in one of 11 dogs. Conclusions and Clinical Importance The results of this study demonstrate an apparent association between C. perfringens and the occurrence of acute hemorrhagic diarrhea. The term “HGE,” which implies the involvement of the stomach, should be renamed as “acute hemorrhagic diarrhea syndrome.”

Although an association between clostridial pathogens and canine idiopathic acute haemorrhagic diarrhoea syndrome (AHDS) has been described, the relevance of those bacteria and their toxins remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between severity of clinical signs and presence of Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) and Clostridium difficile toxin A/B (CDT A/B) in faeces of dogs with AHDS. Faecal samples of 54 dogs with idiopathic AHDS were tested by qualitative CPE and CDT A/B ELISA, and PCR was performed to detect enterotoxin genes of C. perfringens (cpe) and toxin B genes of C. difficile (cdt b). Prevalence of cdt b and CDT A/B in dogs with AHDS was 10/54 and 2/54 versus 3/23 and 0/23 in control dogs. Prevalence of cpe was 35/54 in affected versus 9/23 in control dogs. Prevalence of CPE in dogs with AHDS (13/54) was higher compared with control dogs (0/23). No significant difference was detected between CPE-positive and -negative and between cpe-positive and -negative dogs in severity of clinical signs, duration of hospitalisation, mortality rate and selected laboratory parameters. This study suggests that CPE and CDT A/B do not play a role in idiopathic AHDS, are not associated with clinical parameters in affected dogs and cannot be used to predict disease outcome.

Background: Antibiotics generally are recommended to treat hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (HGE). Inappropriate use of antibiotics may promote risk of antimicrobial resistance and unnecessary adverse drug reactions. The necessity of antimicrobial therapy in dogs with HGE has not been demonstrated. Objective: The purpose of this prospective, placebo‐controlled, blinded study was to evaluate whether treatment with amoxicillin/clavulanic acid improves the clinical course and outcome of HGE in dogs that show no signs of sepsis. Animals: The study included 60 dogs diagnosed with HGE between 2007 and 2009 at the Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, LMU University of Munich, Germany. The inclusion criterion was the presence of acute hemorrhagic diarrhea (<3 days). Dogs pretreated with antibiotics, with signs of sepsis, or diagnosed with any disease known to cause bloody diarrhea were excluded from the study. Methods: Patients were randomly divided into treatment (amoxicillin/clavulanic acid for 7 days) and placebo groups. To evaluate treatment efficacy, severity of clinical signs (based on a newly developed HGE index), duration of hospitalization, and mortality rate were compared between the 2 groups. Results: Fifty‐three of 60 dogs completed the study. No significant difference between treatment groups concerning mortality rate, dropout rate, duration of hospitalization, or severity of clinical signs, either on any individual day or over the course of disease, was observed. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: In some dogs with HGE that show no signs of sepsis, antibiotics may not change the case outcome or time to recovery.

In dogs with idiopathic acute haemorrhagic diarrhoea syndrome (AHDS), a serious loss of intestinal mucosal barrier integrity occurs. However, the incidence of bacterial translocation in dogs with idiopathic AHDS is not known. Thus, the objectives of this prospective study were to identify the incidence of bacteraemia, to evaluate the frequency of septic events and the influence of bacteraemia on various clinical and laboratory parameters, duration of hospitalisation and survival of dogs with idiopathic AHDS. The study included 87 dogs with idiopathic AHDS. Twenty-one healthy dogs served as control group. To evaluate clinical significance of bacterial translocation, blood culture results were compared between patients and controls. Clinical and laboratory parameters were compared between patients with positive and negative blood cultures. There was no significant difference in either incidence of bacteraemia between patients with idiopathic AHDS (11 per cent) and controls (14 per cent) or in severity of clinical signs, laboratory parameters, duration of hospitalisation or mortality between blood culture-positive and culture-negative dogs with idiopathic AHDS. The results of this study suggest that the incidence of bacteraemia in dogs with idiopathic AHDS is low and not different from that of healthy control dogs. Bacteraemia does not influence the clinical course or survival and thus antibiotic treatment is not indicated to prevent sepsis.

Background: Feline panleukopenia is a highly contagious and often lethal disease. Objective: The purpose of the study was to identify prognostic factors for survival of cats with panleukopenia. Animals: Between 1990 and 2007, 244 cats were diagnosed with panleukopenia in the Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, LMU University of Munich, Germany. Diagnosis was established by electron microscopy, polymerase chain reaction of feces or blood, antigen ELISA of feces, pathognomonic histopathological lesions at necropsy, or some combination of these procedures. Methods: Medical records of each cat were evaluated retrospectively. Results: Survival rate was 51.1%. No significant correlation was found between outcome and living conditions, age, vaccination status (unvaccinated versus one or more vaccines administered), or severity of clinical signs. However, of the vaccinated cats, none had received a vaccine later than 12 weeks of age as a kitten. Nonsurvivors had significantly lower leukocyte and thrombocyte counts at presentation compared with survivors. The relative risk of death for patients with <1,000/μL leukocytes was 1.77 times as high as in patients with a leukocyte count of 1,000–2,500/μL (P= .038), and 1.85 times as high as in patients with >2,500/μL leukocytes (P= .001). The likelihood of a fatal outcome was higher when serum albumin concentration was <30 g/L or serum potassium concentration <4 mmol/L. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Vaccination strategies that do not include vaccination of kittens beyond 12 weeks of age may not be adequate to prevent panleukopenia. Leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, hypoalbuminemia, and hypokalemia are negative prognostic factors in cats with panleukopenia.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the Nova CRT 8 electrolyte analyser for determination of concentrations of ionized calcium (Ca(i)) and magnesium (Mg(i)) in cats, to determine the effects of sample handling and storage and to establish reference ranges. The precision and analytical accuracy of the Nova CRT 8 analyser were good. The concentrations of Ca(i) and Mg(i) were significantly lower in aerobically handled serum samples than in those handled anaerobically. The concentrations of Ca(i) and Mg(i) differed significantly among whole blood, plasma and serum. In anaerobically handled serum, the concentration of Ca(i) was stable for 8 h at 22 degrees C, for 5 days at 4 degrees C and for 1 week at -20 degrees C. The concentration of Mg(i) was stable for 4 h at 22 degrees C but for less than 24 h at 4 degrees C and for less than 1 week at -20 degrees C. In serum from 36 cats, the reference ranges were 1.20-1.35 mmol/L for Ca(i) and 0.47-0.59 mmol/L for Mg(i). The Nova CRT 8 electrolyte analyser is suitable for determination of Ca(i) and Mg(i) concentrations in cats. Anaerobically handled serum samples are recommended and, stored at room temperature, they yield accurate results when analysed within 4 h.

Feeding a Bones and Raw Food (BARF) diet has become an increasing trend in canine nutrition. Bones and Raw Food diets contain a high amount of animal components like meat, offal, and raw meaty bones, combined with comparatively small amounts of plant ingredients like vegetables and fruits as well as different sorts of oil and supplements. While many studies have focused on transmission of pathogens via contaminated meat and on nutritional imbalances, only few studies have evaluated the effect of BARF diets on the fecal microbiome and metabolome. The aim of the study was to investigate differences in the fecal microbiome and the metabolome between dogs on a BARF diet and dogs on a commercial diet (canned and dry dog food). Naturally passed fecal samples were obtained from 27 BARF and 19 commercially fed dogs. Differences in crude protein, fat, fiber, and NFE (Nitrogen-Free Extract) between diets were calculated with a scientific nutrient database. The fecal microbiota was analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and quantitative PCR assays. The fecal metabolome was analyzed in 10 BARF and 9 commercially fed dogs via untargeted metabolomics approach. Dogs in the BARF group were fed a significantly higher amount of protein and fat and significantly lower amount of NFE and fiber. There was no significant difference in alpha-diversity measures between diet groups. Analysis of similarity (ANOSIM) revealed a significant difference in beta-diversity (p < 0.01) between both groups. Linear discriminant analysis effect size (LefSe) showed a higher abundance of Lactobacillales, Enterobacteriaceae, Fusobacterium and, Clostridium in the BARF group while conventionally fed dogs had a higher abundance of Clostridiaceae, Erysipelotrichaceae, Ruminococcaceae, and Lachnospiraceae. The qPCR assays revealed significantly higher abundance of Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Clostridium (C.). perfringens and an increased Dysbiosis Index in the BARF group. Principal component analysis (PCA) plots of metabolomics data showed clustering between diet groups. Random forest analysis showed differences in the abundance of various components, including increased 4-hydroxybutryric acid (GBH) and 4-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the BARF group. Based on univariate statistics, several metabolites were significantly different between diet groups, but lost significance after adjusting for multiple comparison. No differences were found in fecal bile acid concentrations, but the BARF group had a higher fecal concentration of cholesterol in their feces compared to conventionally fed dogs. Microbial communities and metabolome vary significantly between BARF and commercially fed dogs.